2019 has been an impressive year for the Philippine tourism industry, with the country bagging several praises showing the efforts from the public and private sectors to promote tourism are paying off.
For one, the Philippines was named the leading diving destination in the 2019 World Travel Awards for the first time. The Department of Tourism was also cited as Asia’s Leading Tourism Board with its success in boosting the country’s arrivals last year.
Meanwhile, Palawan continues to dominate as a world-class tourist destination, landing on CNN Travel’s list of the world’s 10 most beautiful islands.
The same goes for Cebu and Boracay, two Philippine destinations included in the World’s Best Awards of the Travel + Leisure magazine this year.
Aside from the citations, the figures proved continuous growth in the country’s tourism industry.
From January to October 2019, the latest data provided by the Tourism department showed an upward trend in foreign tourist arrivals that tallied more than 6.8 million, up by at least 15.04 percent against the 5,911,161 visitors for the same period in 2018.
Although much needs to be done especially on infrastructure, the private sector is also seeing positive development on the track the Philippine tourism is taking.
“There’s some catching up to do but despite that, I think because of the private sector’s efforts to provide continuity, we’re able to manage to continue the programs and at the end of the day, we’re still on track,” said Philippine Tour Operators Association president Cesar Cruz, referring to the transition period in the change of the Tourism department’s leadership.
“The marketing program that has been in place last year has been continuing. We still have about three years, so hopefully by next year 80 percent of these infrastructure, other airports, ferry terminals, the modernization of our roll-on-roll-off would contribute a lot.”
Cruz also hailed the development of several destinations, which started with the rehabilitation of the resort island of Boracay.
He described these moves as an introduction to Philippine tourism that adheres to sustainability.
“The development regarding the destination in terms of sustainability is a plus factor, especially for travelers. The travelers now are very conscious that they just don’t go to the place because of the site, they want to visit a destination that is conscious of the environment and sustainability of the place,” said.
The Tourism department continues to acknowledge and adapt to the current trends in travel and tourism.
“We can no longer be just fixated with the headcount; we also have to look at the revenue stream, and at the sustainability part of our development efforts,” tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr. said in a recent year-end interview.
Following up on the Boracay rehabilitation that saw the island resort’s closure for six months in 2018, Bengzon said the department was able to establish “a new set of development guidelines,” which redefined their approach with respect to destination and promotions development.
“The Boracay experience has taught us, among other things, the need for convergence with the appropriate government agencies. The Boracay experience has also taught us the importance of making sure that there is a strong buy-in coming from the local stakeholders and the local community because, at the end of the day, it’s really going to be the locals who will be implementing these measures 24/7,” Bengson said.
With the prominent Boracay project, Bengzon said, the government had since recognized the need to strengthen sustainable tourism efforts. Looking at other destinations in the country, he said, stakeholders had also been visibly inspired by the successes achieved on the island.
“Now, other destinations are also coming up with their guidelines on carrying capacities, what to use and what not to use. Who would have thought five years or 10 years ago that we would be making a big issue out of sunscreen, but now we’re at that level. The appreciation is getting deeper as we achieve more successes,” he said.
This year, the government has shifted its focus on restoring the pristine condition of tourist sites in Coron and El Nido in Palawan.
In fact, it has tapped financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank to fund its cleanup initiatives in the two top destinations.
The assistance will focus on solid waste management as well as capacity building of local stakeholders to maintain a sustainable environment for the two areas.
